Interspecies Conflict/Triceraton part 3

QuestionThanks again BK! Hey, I don't know if you caught it, but I made a mistake in the Triceraton's measurements; I said an overall length of about 11'. That was adding the tail length to the rest of the body (5' + 6'). Actually Triceraton's tail hangs about 2' past his legs so his overall length is only 8' or so. Triceraton crouches down to swing his tail (to effect maximum length).

TRICERATON:
General description: A large adult male triceraton stands about 6' high and weighs circa 200 kg. It has a very low fat content; all of its weight is in its armored hide, its muscles, and its dense bones. Counting the tail, it is around 11' long. Although an exclusive herbivore, it is very aggressive and territorial, and is very intelligent. It is equally quadripedal and bipedal (it is bipedal while feeding/traveling; it is bipedal in combat). In build, it is like a heavily muscled (particularly in the legs) man with a powerful, alligator-like tail. It has the tough, leathery frill of a triceratops, a massive, crushing beak, and the normal horns (one short, somewhat swept-back nose horn and two longer forehead horns). Its entire body is very heavily armored, similar to rhino skin, with a thick, osteoderm-covered hide and parts of it (the outer surfaces of the arms and legs especially) are essentially impenetrable. The only "weak" areas are its joints and, particularly, the back of its neck, behind its frill.

Weaponry: First and foremost, the triceraton runs at full speed at its opponent and rolls up into a ball, hurtling into them with great force. It needs at least 100 feet to do this with optimum impact. In close quarters, it uses its massive, swift, and powerful tail to stun and knock down its foe. It can also, by crouching down and taking a deep breath first, emit, via glands in the back of its throat, a noxious cloud whose effects are similar to tear gas. The effective range of this gas is about 10 feet with maximum breath. However, the most devastating weapon of the triceraton is, by far, its monstrous bite. Its beak (whose edges are made of a constantly-growing rim of self-sharpening bone) has a tremendous gape, close to 20", and at parity the triceraton has about three times the bite force of a spotted hyena. Since triceraton is about three times the size of a spotted hyena, it has nearly nine times the jaw force of a hyena. It can easily bite a human cleanly in half, as well as nearly anything else it can fit its jaws around. When it feels very threatened or trapped, the triceraton is capable of leaping high into the air and landing repeatedly on its enemy's head. Triceraton does not normally swipe/slash with its arms (albeit it has fairly sharp claws normally used for grasping vegetation, and it does try to grab and grapple in close quarters with them similarly to a bear). It does not use its horns much in serious combat either, albeit sparring males use them to joust.

Attributes and weaknesses: The triceraton can run as fast as a lion for moderate distances and has about the same endurance as one, and is just as ferocious when threatened. Its durability is on par with a rhino, if not more, and no creature can withstand a direct bite. Even if it doesn't get its mouth around its victim's torso or throat, it will cleanly snap off any legs in its way. However, it is not particularly agile in close proximity, about the same as a spotted hyena. Most fit humans should be able to avoid its cannonball attack by moving to the side at the last moment. It always seeks to stun its opponent (by hitting them in its cannonball attack, with its tail, or with its cloud of noxious breath) before getting into position and finishing them off with its killing bite. The majority of agile animals, even though they can do little or nothing to harm triceraton, should be able to dodge its attacks long enough to escape (if they want to).

XENO (created by Anthony):
".... big cat , species Xeno , avg weight males 600lbs females 400lbs , live in groups of up to 12 it's always two males in each group , live on North American plains , top speed 45mph , 4inch canines , bluish gray with jaguar pattern....2500lb bite force...4inch claws...kills with a bite through the skull...excellent climber; most athletic cat"

1: Triceraton vs. Xeno at parity: Triceraton will need to use a varied arsenal to keep Xeno off-balance. Xeno's bite force will be comparable to Triceraton's, and its 4-inch claws will probably get through various areas of Triceraton's hide. Xeno's hide won't hold up well to Triceraton's bite, and that will be key in this contest. Xeno has the agility to avoid the rolling attack & swinging tail of Triceraton most of the time, but it will need to be creative in its attacks to subdue Triceraton without getting bit. Probably close to 50/50.

2: Triceraton vs. Helloid at parity: Helloid, being a mustelid, will be very strong & aggressive for its size. Helloid's thick fur (with bristles) will offer decent defense against Triceraton's bite, and Triceraton's osteoderm-covered hide will offer decent defense against Helloid's 4-inch canines & 1,500lb bite force. However, the bite of the Helloid can finish this fight quickly if the right spot is attacked. Helloid's claws can stab into Triceraton to create a anchoring point to allow the jaws to close in. Triceraton's snapping jaws could also cause damage in the right area of the mustelid as well. Mobility will be close between the 2. A rolling attack by Triceraton might not hit its target, but could turn the tide if it did. The noxious gas would have effect, but Helloid would likely tenaciously fight through this long enough to sustain a ferocious attack & possibly knock Triceraton to the ground. Triceraton has the better weaponry overall, but the bipedal creature will have problems solving the 4-inch fangs driven by a high bite force when Helloid closes in. I would probably call this one a 50/50, slight edge to the Helloid.

3: Triceraton vs. jaguar at parity: Jaguars are the strongest big cat pound-for-pound, and have very powerful jaws that are used to puncture & crush skulls of victims. They have short, muscular limbs armed with sharp claws, and they are fantastic at gaining control of an opponent. However, Triceraton will be able to use its noxious gas to impede the focus & function of the jaguar, and its hide will offer some protection from its claws. Triceraton's jaws close like a steel trap, and their sharp edges will readily slice into any part of an adversary that comes into range. Not an easy fight, but Triceraton should prevail.

4: Triceraton vs. African wild dog pack: The average African wild dog pack numbers about 6 to 10 adults (but can exceed 30). African wild dogs weigh around 25kg on average, but can peak at around 35kg. 10 African wild dogs will surround Triceraton and attempt to employ a "bite & retreat" strategy to wear the heavier beast down. However, Triceraton will have decent protection with its osteoderm-covered hide, and will be able to use its tail offensively at the same time it delivers bites. Even if the dogs succeeded in tiring Triceraton before their numbers dwindled, the noxious gas would be able to repel (and possibly incapacitate) the attacking canids. The gas could easily be released at the onset of the battle, and Triceraton would be able to strike & bite with relative ease. Because of Triceraton's weaponry (and how effective it will be against these particular foes), it would be favored against an average-sized pack of African wild dogs. If 30 wild dogs attacked, they could possibly pull it off if they used their nimble movements to avoid Triceraton's tail & bite, but only if Triceraton did not employ the noxious gas. How much this gas effects African wild dogs would be important in determining how many dogs Triceraton could stand up to, but its similarity to tear-gas would mean that over 30 might be a reasonable number. Triceraton wins.

5: Triceraton vs. T-rex at parity: Tyrannosaurus rex had huge, gaping jaws armed with sharp teeth & a powerful bite-force. This would be the biggest challenge for Triceraton to overcome. The best strategy for Triceraton would be to attempt a rolling attack against T-rex (which would likely succeed based on the average lateral movement of the theropod), and bite its neck with its steel-trap jaws to finish the fight. Engaging the T-rex without doing this would make the outcome of the battle depend on who got the best bite in first. The intelligence of Triceraton should steer it toward a rolling attack to gain the upper hand, and it should be able to complete the win from there. Triceraton wins.

Expertise

Questions regarding animal conflicts within realistic or unrealistic settings are welcome; my strength lies in medium-to-large species. Small animals (including birds of prey), prehistoric animals, sea creatures, and domestic dog breeds are usually within my scope, but to a lesser degree. I can't confidently answer hypothetical questions about human vs animal, arachnids, insects, or amphibians, but I am willing to field them nonetheless.

Experience

From a young age, I have been interested in animals. Starting with the original Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom and World Book Encyclopedias, I have seen many animal shows and documentaries and have read multiple books on the subject. I have a solid understanding of the physiology of many animals and interspecies conflict in general.